Being an airline pilot sometimes feels like operating in a very enclosed environment. Even if the industry has boomed during the 25 years I’ve been a commercial pilot, it still is a rather specialized small bunch of people making a living like I do. It has it’s pros and cons…
At scarce occasions, I’ve been able to bring a friend or a family member onboard and spoiled them with a cock pit seat. It’s always nice to be able to show what you do at work, even if it takes a vast amount of security arrangements and procedures to set it up correctly. One of the most positive thing is to have your eyes opened again…By this, I mean that we sit on the same chair, doing our checklist and procedures all year long. Often, with time pressure and issues to be taken care of all the time. So, what’s the catch? The catch is that people not used to a cock pit view really opens your eyes! You appreciate the clouds, the scenery and stuff around you in way you haven’t done for a long time…
During our stop at ACE I tried to look upon the aircraft and the surroundings in a slightly unusual way. The pictures below are some of the perspectives I found, just by trying another angle. An aircraft looks so much different from the outside – I’ve flown lots of medium and big size jets, but the cock pit space has always been small and to some extent very similar. It’s just a completely different story on the outside. We perform our external inspection before every flight, but we then often have to look at the details. Any damage, are the brakes within limits, the tires, any leakage from the hydraulic systems? I could go on forever.
Safety wise, it would be appropriate and a smart thing to do this before you hop in and drive your car every time. If I do?
No, I’m not…